STOLEN || 18+ (Monsters #3)

.76. White

"Those who are hardest to love need it the most."

- Socrates

. . .

Leyla

"When?"

"I'm in the jet right now, Gabby. I will be there in nine hours."

"Okay," she muttered. "Fucking finally."

I curled into a ball on my seat, still sore. The jet was different from the last one. Apparently, Dante was using it. How many did these people have?

This one was grey and white. The seats were grey, large and so comfortable I felt like sleeping as soon as I sat on one.

Luca was in the jet, along with some other men who looked equally dangerous. Giovanni and Fabiano were sitting on either side of me, quiet and tense.

After hanging up with Gabriella, the plane soon took off and before long, we were in the air.

They were yet to speak a word. I was uncomfortable.

"Are you hungry, Leyla?" Fabiano asked.

I looked up at him. "No...are you two okay?" I sneaked a glance at Giovanni. It was hard to look at him and not feel embarrassed.

"No Valentino is Italy," Giovanni muttered. "Makes us a little uneasy, is all."

"Oh," I whispered and bit my tongue to stop myself from saying that we could return. I wanted to see my sisters. I needed to make sure that they were alright. These brothers had always been together - they didn't know how much it hurt to be away from your siblings.

We ate and I slept after a while of them talking in Italian to other people.

When I woke up, we were in New York.

In Creeds' territory.

. . .

Olivia was glowing as she descended the giant staircase of her mansion, her black dress dragging behind her. Now, her bump was a little visible. She smiled at me, pulling me in for a hug.

I sighed, slowing my eyes, trying to not crush her with my hug. She rubbed my back, not letting me go till I pulled back.

"You look beautiful."

She grinned. "Thanks, Leyla. You look beautiful." Her eyes moved over me. Finally, she stepped back and looked at Giovanni and Fabiano. She nodded at Fabiano with a smile and gave Giovani a side hug.

"Where are Astrid and Gabby?"

"They-"

Astrid shot out of a beautiful gazebo nearby I had not noticed before. She ran towards me, her brilliant blond hair fluttering as she collided with me. I picked her up, loving how it took so much effort. I was not the only one punished with a lack of food when we lived with our father. I hugged her close to me, rubbing her back and she sobbed into my shoulder.

"You two should come inside."

I heard them walk away. I didn't look. I hugged Astrid close, feeling my heart twist as she sobbed more. Tears burned in my eyes but I kept them in, knowing they'd only make her cry more.

I walked to the gazebo, sitting down on a couch there. Colouring books were scattered around. A cat sitting on top of one.

Astrid sniffled as she pulled back. I wiped the tears off her face, kissing her forehead. "How are you?"

She sniffled that. "That's Hera," she whispered to me, pointing at the cat. "She's awesome."

"I'm sure she is," I said. "How are you?" She was my half-sister, but she still was a lot like me when it came to talking about feelings.

She wiped the tears off her face. "Hera gets sad when her sisters are not around her."

I cupped her face. "I'm sure her sisters never want to be away from her."

"One of them was away for too long," she mumbled, playing with her hands.

"That one is really sorry she was. But she is here now, yes? I am here now."

She hugged me again. "Don't leave me again."

"I won't."

I wouldn't.

. . .

"You look beautiful, Gabriella."

Gabriella glanced at me through the mirror, wearing her earring. "You do too. I'm glad we are the same size."

My lehenga was white. The blouse had tiny spaghetti straps which held it up. The skirt was heavy and with intense embroidery. The dupatta was around my elbows, rounding my back. I had spent hours on my hair, defining my curls and then about an hour on my makeup.

The rings around my fingers were platinum, excluding the one Giovanni gave me which was black. The jhumkas in my ears were large but not that heavy. There were about four white bangles around my wrist with my nails painted white, too. Samya had used white henna to create some pretty patterns on my hands.

"White looks good on you," Gabriella said.

"Yeah," I muttered. "And you rock black."

Her lehenga was the same as mine but it was black. Completely black.

She turned, her back facing the mirror. She sat on the dressing table. We were in her closet, in her room. Gabriella, Astrid and Leona lived in the guesthouse near the mansion. It was a few yards away from the mansion and from what I had gathered, Astrid spent half of her time at the mansion with the Creeds.

She was silent. I leaned against the door frame. My feet hurt in the heels I was wearing.

"You know," she said. "If you ever marry them, you should wear something like this."

I stilled. "What?"

"You know, a white lehenga. Mom would love that, wouldn't she?"

"I'm not marrying them."

She smiled. "I know. But...you like them."

I had not seen them since yesterday. I had spent time with my sisters and briefly talked to Leona who had looked all over me like Olivia had and then given me a brief hug.

"I do."

"They kidnapped you."

"My captors and my knights in shining armour." I chuckled.

"Your monsters and your princes."

I paused. "Perhaps."

She let out a sigh. "Ryder turned out to be evil."

"I know," I muttered. "We weren't together for long. Yet he managed to hide something this big from me."

"Aren't mafia men good at that? Hiding?"

"I suppose they are."

"I hope your monsters kill him."

I gulped. He had killed Miss Summers, someone who the Valentinos and Creeds loved deeply. He had hurt me. He had killed those guards - ruining their families. He had broken my trust.

I sighed. "Everything is over now," I said.

Everything was over. Testa was going to give the Valentinos' their sister in exchange for his father. All would be well. All would be good.

Yet, I had a bad feeling.

. . .